The present invention is directed toward a collapsible table and more particularly, toward a collapsible table that can be easily set up or taken down, which can be easily transported and which can be enlarged (or made smaller) by adding (or removing) sections to the interior thereof.
Although it may have numerous other uses, the present invention has particular use as a temporary table such as a dinner table for picnics or outside parties or the like. I may also be used indoors in addition to or in lieu of an existing dining table for serving a large number of guests.
When going to a picnic or outing, people frequently must bring a table with them. In order to be able to be carried in a car or other personal vehicle, such portable tables must be able to be folded to a reasonably small size. In addition, to be sturdy enough to support several people eating thereon, such tables must also be relatively heavy. This is not a major problem for very small tables but becomes difficult for larger tables.
Furthermore, because tables are normally of a fixed size, people must own several different sized tables or must carry two or more small tables with them depending on the number of people who may be using the tables. This, of course, adds expense and inconvenience.
Folding tables are well known in the art. They range from very heavy and sturdy tables that fold in half at the center and with folding legs to simple card tables with folding legs. The heavy tables are difficult to carry around and the smaller card tables can be quite flimsy and often too small for use. Such card tables, however, may still be too large to be conveniently carried in a car.
There have, in the past, been proposals to provide several tables that can be connected to make larger tables. These are described, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,857,223; 3,421,459; 4,915,034 and 5,144,888. None of these prior art tables, however, is suitable for use as a portable picnic or dining table or the like. These tables are heavy, do not fold to small sizes and have somewhat complicated mechanisms for connecting the various sections together.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,487,536 illustrates a rather simple means for connecting two tables together to make a larger table that includes a plurality of pins extending horizontally from the side edge of one table and a plurality of complementary holes in the side edge of an adjacent table into which the pins are inserted. The table disclosed in this patent, however, is a specialized cutting table that is quite massive and can neither be folded nor easily transported.
There is, therefore, a need for a collapsible and expandable table that is light in weight so that it can be easily carried and which can be easily set up when needed and easily taken down to be transported when not in use.